6. Illinois (3-1)
Last season was something of a breakthrough for Illinois, with a fantastic season culminating in a run to the Elite Eight. That was the Fighting Illini’s first deep Tourney run in nearly two decades and by far the best season since Brad Underwood came to town. Major talent has shined in Champaign in recent memory, though it’s a whole new host of faces making the noise this year.
Illinois didn’t have much it could prove early on, winning three straight home dates over local mid-majors without significant challenge, though their offense didn’t exactly shine against Oakland last week. A major challenge actually awaited this past week, as the Illini lost by double-digits in Birmingham against an elite Alabama team. They were owned inside the arc for a second straight game and don’t quite yet looked like a ranked team.
New faces galore lead the charge, as freshman Will Riley is the leading scorer while sophomore Tomislav Ivisic is nearly averaging a double-double. Those two underclassmen will only continue to improve as the season progresses, while Underwood hopes for even more production from more veteran names like Kylan Boswell and Tre White. It’s hard to say that Illinois failed their first major challenge, but they aren’t the elite offense they were last season, and that’s not a surprise without Terrence Shannon Jr. around town.